I Don't Care
by Pokey314
Summary: Two years after the Battle of Hogwarts, Hermione and Draco run into each other at a gala and start over. One shot inspired by the song I Don't Care.


Disclaimer: I do not own the Harry Potter franchise, nor anything affiliated with it; that all belongs to the wonderful J.K. Rowling.

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"Once again, thank you all for gathering here today in solidarity, to honour everyone who fought last year. It is through the efforts of those gathered here today, and those who paid the ultimate price for our freedom, that we are here celebrating a full year free from Voldemort's tyranny.

Thanks to you, the people of our world, we have raised $3 million galleons for the orphaned and widowed families who lost their loved ones to Voldemort. We were able to have Hogwarts completely restored as of June thanks to countless volunteers who helped with consulting and ensuring the safety of all students. We have had a 30% increase in the employment rate with 5,000 jobs being created in the past year. So thank you."

She lowered her drink and paused. "To freedom!"

Glasses were raised all across the hall, while the witches and wizards erupted into thunderous applause. She forced herself to smile despite the noise, the hundreds of eyes trained on her made sure of that. Despite having spoken at dozens of galas and events since the Battle of Hogwarts, she still wasn't used to the camera flashes from photographers and the never ending onslaught of questions from reporters.

To the outside observer, Hermione Granger was the epitome of perfect. With a radiant smile, quick wit, smooth eloquence, and a pristine image, she was the ideal role model and poster girl. Truthfully however, she was tired. Being in the spotlight every hour of the day took it's toll and she sorely missed the days when she could simply hang out with her friends. Instead, she now had to hide from all of Wizarding Britain. Which led her here.

After satisfying the reporters with a few polite and well worded statements, she successfully managed to step off of the stage and away from the podium. Some people still kept trying to get her attention, but she just ignored them.

As she headed to the bar, the noise of the people milling around began to worm itself into her head. The chatting seemed to almost double in volume and she had to fight to stop herself from clapping her hands over her ears. Each step became more unstable and it was only by a miracle that she didn't fall onto the floor right then and there.

Finally she reached the counter and leant heavily upon it. She took a few deep breaths, gritting her teeth and squeezing her eyes shut.

"You alright there miss?" Asked the bartender, an older but kind looking man. She forced herself to look up and relaxed her facial expression.

"Oh, sorry, I'm fine thank you." His concerned expression made it much easier to slip her mask on again.

"Can I get you anything to drink? You look like you could use a nice shot o' brandy."

"No," she replied firmly, but politely, "just a virgin mulled cranberry daiquiri please."

"Coming right up miss. Grab a seat and I'll have it over in two shakes of a bottle o'gin."

She found a stool and perched herself on the edge of it, leaning her elbows on the cool surface of the bar counter.

"Virgin daiquiri? Goodness Granger, you haven't loosened up at all have you? You're just as uptight as you were in Hogwarts."

She whipped her head out of her hands to come face to face with the one and only Draco Malfoy.

"Malfoy!" She replied in shock. Whether the room was spinning because she turned too fast or because she was face to face with her old rival from school, she couldn't tell. "What are you doing here?"

"Same as you apparently, hiding from the sea of reporters and having a nice respite from the public eye. At least the bar is a little more secluded considering we're at a rather busy event."

The bartender returned with her cranberry daiquiri and she took it gratefully from him, resisting the urge to down the entire drink in order to settle her stomach.

"Not much of a respite if you ask me," she said, having a very controlled sip of her drink, "I've had plenty of people come up to me at bars when I'm at events like these. They bombard me with endless questions or attempt to thank me for everything I've done. Come to think of it, what are you doing here? Coming to talk to the 'brains of the Golden Trio'? Or the 'fierce lioness who won the war'?"

"Please don't remind me of Skeeter's ridiculous articles, it's a pain to see them on the front page of the Prophet every morning, I'd rather avoid them where possible." He replied with a grimace.

"At least she leaves you alone, she's been writing non-stop articles about me for the last month and a half. I wish she had just stuck with Harry. Same with the ministry. Even though they always talk about Harry at these events, I'm the only member of our trio who is consistently asked to speak at them. You'd think he and Ron were illiterate!"

"Well aren't they?" He replied slyly.

"Oh come off it." She said before taking a more generous sip of her drink.

"Am I detecting bitter feelings towards your best friends? Perhaps I was wrong in my initial assessment of you." He says, eyes filled with mirth. A strange image considering she had never seen him this happy during their time at Hogwarts.

"No, Harry and Ron, they're great. I just wish that I wasn't here. The limelight is not a pleasant place. I just want to go back home." By the time she had finished her sentence the noise around her had managed to climb back up and she could barely fight to push it out of her head.

"Are you okay?" Asked Draco, concern beginning to show on his face.

"Oh yes, I'm quite alright." Even as she said this, the noise hit a crescendo and a few flashes from nearby cameras caught her like a deer in headlights. All of a sudden the overwhelming noise was directed towards her, reporters questions overlapping each other like waves.

"Hermione Granger! Why is someone like you talking to Draco Malfoy?"

"Could you give a statement as to why you're talking to a known Death Eater?"

"Aren't you worried to be conversing with someone who fought against you during the Battle of Hogwarts?"

The questions and prodding from the reporters were too much and for the first time, Hermione Granger lost control and dropped her mask in full view of the public. Her mouth was open ever so slightly, looking around frantically and wide-eyed. She dropped her glass but no one heard the sound over the voices.

"Excuse me, excuse me," interrupted Draco, "I'm going to have to ask all of you to please leave Hermione alone, thank you." His words were sharp, clear, and loud as he blocked her from the pressing mob of people.

She took that moment while they were distracted to hide. Panic stricken, she ran from the hall, pushing people in her haste. As she ran, she barely processed Draco trying to prevent anyone from following her.

She ran until she found a way outside. Throwing the door open, she began to gasp for the fresh, crisp night air, running through the large gardens of the venue. She didn't stop running through the bushes and topiaries until she found a stone bench, hidden away from any prying eyes.

Exhausted, she dropped onto it. Tears pricked her eyes and the burning forced her to close them. Shaky breaths escaped through her mouth, silent tears rolling down her cheeks, and soon she was sobbing uncontrollably.

She cried for the situation that she was in. She cried for the way that she was so terribly lonely these days. She cried for the people who were still hurting after the war. She cried for the ones that they lost during the war. But most importantly, she cried.

She cried until there were no more tears left to fall down her face, and well beyond that. She cried as her breathing turned ragged and she was gasping for air once again. She cried even as her ribs and cheeks began to hurt. She cried as time passed and the heat that was pressing her earlier faded and was replaced with a bitterly cold ache.

Shivering, she tried to control her breathing. After a few tries, she managed to get a couple deep breaths in. She reached around for her purse to pull out a handkerchief and then realized that in her haste to leave the bar earlier, she had left it there.

"Looking for this?" She snapped her head up, tear streaks shining in the moonlight. A blond man stepped out from behind a bush, holding her beaded purse. "Merlin Granger, you look like you got hit by a bus."

She merely glared at him and snatched her purse back, calmly wiping her face and pulling out her handkerchief, before dropping the purse onto the bench.

"My apologies, that was rude of me." He said, gently sitting down next to her.

"No kidding Malfoy, didn't they teach you manners in that pureblood family of yours?" She asked in a biting tone. He bristled slightly at her comment but then relaxed.

"Yes I was taught manners, as well as the fact that I should always give up my jacket to a lady if she looks cold." He retorted, removing his blazer. "And you, no offense, look absolutely freezing."

He wrapped it around her shoulders and she immediately huddled inside it.

"Thank you Malfoy, I really mean it, and I apologize, I was being rude as well." She said sheepishly.

"That's alright. How are you by the way? I tried to find you after you ran out, but I only just managed to find this spot. You didn't exactly hide somewhere obvious."

"Well I didn't want anyone following me."

"You didn't want anyone following you or you didn't want nosy reporters, aristocrats, and classmates prying into your life and overwhelming you?" He asks, a small smirk lighting his face.

"I'm sure you can guess, I'm almost certain that you deal with the same, if not worse."

"You are not wrong. Though it's not as bad since I don't work with the Ministry. I floo directly from my house to my offices. You on the other hand, have to avoid all the press wherever you go."

She laughs bitterly. "You don't say."

They lapsed into silence, the air of the crisp fall evening not bothering either of them. As they sat on the cold, stone bench, birds flew past, owls hooted in the distance, and squirrels darted past. In the distance they could hear voices from the various people leaving the gala as they walked right past their hiding spot.

She cleared her throat and took a breath, filling the silence. "Malfoy, I, um, well, I wanted to thank you for what you did earlier at the bar, you didn't have to stop them from following me, so thank you. I don't think I would have survived this night if you hadn't."

He smiled at her, the first time this evening that it actually reached his eyes. "Funnily enough, I don't think I would have survived either if I hadn't run into you tonight Granger. And please, call me Draco, I think it's time to leave our childish days behind us and start again as adults."

"In that case, call me Hermione." A weight felt like it was lifted off of her shoulders and she felt more free than she had in months. Somehow, this little show of kindness had done more good for her now, than the countless days she spent with her friends.

Together they sat, leaning towards each other, shoulder around shoulder, as the moonlight and stars lit up the night, blissfully unaware of the busy world around them.

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Author's Note: My first finished one-shot! This may turn into a two-shot but we'll see. For now, it is complete. The story was inspired by an awesome song called I Don't Care by Ed Sheeran feat. Justin Bieber. Let me know in a comment if you think I should write a second part to it and if you would like to see it from Draco's perspective or how their friendship might develop further down the road. Have a great week you guys! (P.S. I may have another multi-chapter story up in about a year, depending on how that goes, with a few short fics in between)


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